My Favorite Reads So Far This Year

One of the things I love about my new campus is there are so many more people who read! I actually started a staff book club this year and people actually joined. I have enjoyed having colleagues to discuss books with. 

Because I think teachers should also be readers, I want to share with you my favorite reads so far this year.

Chapter books for read alouds to the kids:

My favorite new discovery this year! Written in the voices of an evil mastermind who happens to be a guinea pig and a corgi who thinks he is a superhero. The students LOVED listening to this story and I LOVED reading it to them. We laughed out loud and they begged me to read the rest of the series to them.

I am always looking for stories to promote empathy with my students and this is one story that does just that. The father brings home a baby donkey who lost its mother and probably won't survive. The boy in the story not only nurses it back to health but makes Winslow the donkey part of the family.

For older kids:

A wonderful story of friendship and compassion for others. Their teacher wanted them to bond with each other so every Friday they spent the last hour of the day just talking. Each of them had issues they were trying to deal with and having friends there made it easier.

This story just about broke my heart. A story that details the struggles of growing up in poverty. It truly made me think about all my students face daily. 

This was recommended by one of my favorite fellow teachers Tammy. And it did not disappoint. A mix of fantasy and drama that I believe kids 3rd grade and up would appreciate.

And for adults:

The Marsh Girl is the stuff of legends. A little girl abandoned by her mother and siblings raises herself after her father mysteriously disappears as well. A story of survival and community but also a mystery. I did not see that ending coming!

I know this book has been on my to-read pile for a long time. I think this was a very well-written story of the experience of a slave and her owner. At the end the author explains that many of her characters were actually based on real people. I have read a lot about these sisters who supported abolishing slavery at all costs.

(Pronounced cer-see)-I have always loved Greek mythology and really enjoyed this story about one of Titan's daughters and her relationship with Odysseus.

Have you read anything lately that you enjoyed?